TV news anchor Ron Burgundy has come down in the world in more ways than one. In the new film formally opening in theaters Wednesday, a jobless Burgundy, played by Will Ferrell, ends up working the graveyard shift at a new 24-hour cable news station. The usual hijinks prevail as he stumbles his way back to the top.

But the movie itself never gets off the mat.

Turns out the marketing of the film was more entertaining than the sequel it promotes. The ubiquitous ads and stunts — a school of journalism named itself after him — had a quirky sensibility that seemed to bode well for the sequel.

Less time was spent on the film itself, which skips across the screen with a rootless, manic energy. The result resembles a series of "Saturday Night Live" sketches — Ferrell and his co-writer-director Adam McKay are "SNL" veterans — that have one or two laughs but go on too long.

The news business is ripe for satire. And the sequel does have a kernel of a great idea: that shallow and clueless Burgundy triggered the avalanche of infotainment we suffer through today, thanks in part to his Breaking News coverage of a car chase in Milwaukee.

But instead of exploiting the TV newsroom culture, the sequel focuses on the personal journey of Burgundy's village idiot and his band of lunatics. Steve Carell plays weather guy Brick Tamland, who appears to suffer from Tourette syndrome; David Koechner's sports anchor Champ Kind owns a fried-bat franchise; and reporter Brian Fantana, played by Paul Rudd, has produced a seven-part report on vaginas.

Leading the charge is loudmouth boor Burgundy, who is as politically incorrect as "Borat." He can't stop saying "black" upon meeting his African-American boss, played by Meagan Good, and talks insulting jive at her family's dinner table.

Carell's ramblings are often unintelligible, and he and love interest Kristen Wiig exchange high-pitched noises that only dolphins can hear. Coincidentally, an animal rights group is attacking the film for scenes set at SeaWorld, which has been under scrutiny for its treatment of killer whales.